Violent Ignorance

Why does ignorance matter? In Violent Ignorance: Confronting Racism and Migration Control (Zed Books, 2021), Hannah Jones, an associate professor in the Department of Sociology at the University of Warwick, thinks through the role of ignorance in a variety of state and social crises, ranging from the Grenfell Tower disaster, through the Windrush scandal, to the refugee crisis in Europe. The book looks at complex personal histories, experiences of bureaucracy, and acts of resistance against the violence of contemporary society. Closing with a manifesto to confront and combat violent ignorance, the book will be essential reading across humanities and social sciences.

Dave O'Brien is Chancellor's Fellow, Cultural and Creative Industries, at the University of Edinburgh's College of Art.